Beginning

[thecastle]

One moment you were elsewhere, surely speaking to your friends, fighting in a battle of your life, dying, or even in a state of non-existence in its entirety. It doesn't matter now, since when you open your eyes it’s become clear that not only is everything around you foreign and unfamiliar, so is everyone. And there seems to be a fair lot of you, at that.

It's easy to discern a few things upon a cursory glance, once you pick yourself up from the field of grass you're resting on. The place you've awoken in seems to be fairly tranquil, for the first few moments at least, and the view of a newly budded sakura tree is among the first that will greet you. In the distance, is a towering castle that manages to look all at once both imposing and welcoming at the same time. There's also an odd pendant around your neck, which you'll find won't come off despite your best attempts. In your pocket you'll find a room key, engraved with a number.

The weather is currently cool, with the sun brightly shining in the sky, though there are a few too many clouds to make it a completely clear day. While most of them appear rather normal, every so often you might spot one that looks just a bit off— like a storm cloud that's completely lost it's way. Lucky for you, it doesn't seem like you're going to have to worry about any inclement weather anytime soon, as they'll vanish from your vision as quickly as they came.

A large stone wall surrounds the entirety of the castle, though it's anyone guess why that is— maybe it's for your safety, maybe it's to keep you trapped, or maybe it's for another reason entirely. The only breach in the wall is a single gate that looks like it certainly led to the outside at one point, but that too has been cordoned off by solid stone.

Fortunately, there's nothing to stop you from entering the castle itself, where you'll find it's pretty grand all things considered. The lighting inside is provided not by electricity, but by magical flame that adjusts to the time of day or night. Actually, if you're looking for anything electronic anywhere, or even a simple power outlet, you'll be sorely out of luck.

For now, it might be best to explore and make some sense of where you are and why you're here— maybe one of your fellow travelers might know something? There are some plaques in the Great Hall that might catch your interest given their focus, in addition to one ridiculously large golden one that seems to bear rules.

Welcome, fellow warriors, to your very long stay.

Comments

[blacksong]

i. wakey wakey

[As per her usual, Zero's pretty annoyed. Her sisters won't die, her traveling companions all irritate her in one way or another, and she's just generally tired of having to deal with bullshit. Waking up alone in some surprisingly comfy grass might honestly have been nice if not for the fact that, y'know, she has no idea where she is or how she got here.

Fucking hell.

If you're out in the field, it doesn't matter how confused or lost you might look. This tranquil field's about to lose that tranquility as one girl angrily shouts:]

Hey, you! Where the hell is this?! [And don't mind the flower literally in her eye, this is a far more pressing matter.]

ii. where did they even get these pictures from

[Over by the plaques, Zero takes her time in looking at them. It's hard to say she's actually interested in what they say, but it's not like there's anything else to do here. She barely gives the rules a once over, looking instead at all the pictures of everyone. As she gets to hers and reads over it though, she can't help but laugh.]

It's not like they're wrong with any of this. [Actually, given all those rules, maybe being good at murder is part of why she's here. If you're nearby, she'll turn to you and ask:] What kind of shit does your thing say?

iii. modern plumbing is a miracle

[Did you need to go to the bathroom? Were you hoping to get a moment of peace and privacy to yourself? Don't worry, you will in a second (probably), but the you won't even need to open the door as Zero swings it open looking both baffled and almost impressed.]

Who the fuck even needs such a fancy toilet? [Look she's from medieval fantasy land, cut her some slack.]

iv. wildcard me?!

[If none of these prompts work for you, feel free to hit me up and we can has out something different instead!]

iii.

[professionality]

It's quite sanitary...? Truth be told, I am happy we have this comfort.

[ ... ]

And as far as necessity goes... hygienic restrooms reduce infection risks.

[ She doesn't know if they do. She is 100% guessing. ]

[blacksong]

Do they really.

[It comes out almost harshly flat and disbelieving, but she... doesn't actually know either.]

But if those rules are right and we're really supposed to be killing each other here, having a nice place to shit seems pointless. [And frankly it's almost too nice. She doesn't know what to think of it.]

[professionality]

It might work out to our advantage, I think... After all, if the general happiness is higher we might be less likely to devolve into chaos?

The average level of frustration would surely be higher with lacking sanitary facilities.

[ She works first class on a flight and people still complain about the toilets :| ]

[blacksong]

You can always just go outside. [She's not picky when it comes to sanitary facilities... Or anything, really.]

i.

[browbeater]

[well-- at least he wasn't the only one confused. He has no earthly clue where they are, but his gut is telling him that they need to leave (that or he's still worried about the earth queen and Kai. And his brother. you know, normal stuff.]

I don't know.

[he's... honestly assuming the flower is some part of spirit... stuff. She's right, this is far more pressing.]

[blacksong]

Then who the fuck does know? [She can see some other people around, and they can't ALL have just woken up with absolutely no clue about what was going on.



Right???]

ii

[buddyoldpal]

[ See, how this is the kind of attitude Nishitani is here for. He got a good laugh out of his plaque (and the fact that his favorite person ever is here too,) so when he sees Zero and the information beside her, he grins. Dang, girl's got taste! ]

Mine's as good as yers, girlie. Pretty damn sweet, huh?

[blacksong]

[She takes a closer look at Nishitani's plaque, and what do you know, he wasn't kidding.]

Heh, not bad. But what makes spending time in a holding cell so fun? [Given her own experience with being held in one and, uh. How particularly Not Pleasant it was, color her curious.]

[buddyoldpal]

[ Kindred spirits.... I'm sure this will go well. ]

Hah, my dad's a cop, so he lets me hang out when I gotta take a breather or I got fuckers comin' after me. Only place criminals don't think ta look fer ya is in jail.

[blacksong]

[That actually does sound like a smart move. But of course instead of noting that, what she says is:]

Your dad must've been one shitty cop.

iii

[presomnia]

[HONESTLY, MODERN PLUMBING IS A MIRACLE, TIKI RELATES

anyway she's told too many people unsuccessfully to not say "fuck" today to bother with this instance]

I know! It's really amazing, it's all...self-sufficient. I live in a palace and there's nothing like this there.

[She's really only passing by, she doesn't actually have to go right now, she is totally here to gush over how amazing running water and the flush lever are.]

[blacksong]

[Sorry Tiki, get used to hearing it TOO MUCH from Zero...]

Same here. I've busted into who knows how many castles and fortresses, and none of them were ever decked out like this place is. [So a bit different from actually LIVING somewhere nice, but details right!!]

[presomnia]

[CONCERN]

...Why would you break into so many castles?

[actually her army's castle-breaking record probably isn't anything to sneer at either, she's mostly just curious. story time???]

ii

[coinflipped]

Nothing that's a lie.

[At least his profile seems accurate and he looks at Zero's and... oh.

That...

Huh.]

You seem to have a unique set of skills.

[He's not sure if he would want 'sex' listed as a skill on his profile...

And yes, he's totally judging right now.]

[blacksong]

[She shrugs easily. It's not like she's unused to being judged, and regardless, it's not like she actually cares about what anyone else thinks of her. She knows she's an awful person, it's whatever.]

"Unique" is one way to put it. You don't have to sugarcoat it.

[coinflipped]

[He judges, he's used to being judged in return, the world is round and cheese is great or something. Well, it's comforting to be around her, to say the least. At least her attitude is pretty familiar to him.]

I'd say your skillset shows a lack of morality, but that would be a case of the pot calling the kettle black. [He shrugs. Well, he's still judging, but he's not offput by this? If anything there's a sense of respect there now.]

Though I wouldn't be happy if those 'skills' were listed in mine. [Says the guy with bad luck, piracy, and theft...]

ii

[notimmortal]

Uh, nothing flattering. So just ignore like all of it.

[Except for the fact that it is 100% true. It just fails to actually cover his good points.]

[blacksong]

[There's a pause as she gives him a Look before she immediately starts looking for his plaque. He can't say something like that and expect her not to check, right!!]

Skilled at doing stupid things? [She doesn't even bother to hide her laughter.] Seriously?

[notimmortal]

Hey, I wasn't the one who got us captured, twice! Okay, maybe the second time was kinda my fault, but I didn't know about the thing in my eye and I was all for running away when the guards came.

i.

[tangas]

This is a witch school. [ he raises a hand in greeting as she approaches him, unfazed by her language. ] Congratulations on making enrollment.

[blacksong]

Do I look like I'd enroll to become a stupid witch? [Zero have you looked at yourself lately??]

[tangas]

Uh, yeah?

[ I MEAN, he's from japan. hell yes you look like an animu witch. ]

Were you going for something else with that cosplay?

ii

[devilsphysician]

Well - I admit my portrait isn't a flattering look.

[Does he always so irritated? He wondered to himself]

And - I'm a bit surprised they knew about that skill.

[blacksong]

Which skill? [His plaque doesn't really strike her as one of the stranger ones here.] What I don't get though is how they got any of these portraits in the first place.